Once you'd decided between those options, a dazzling array of extras were on offer, including rounded sides, (£2) a sword case, (£2 10s) side windows, (£7) a rear window, (£2) a set of large scroll springs, (£4 16s) luggage boot, (£8) Morocco leather interior in place of second quality cloth, (£8) a set of silk squabs, or cushions, with half backs, (£4) Venetian blinds instead of mahogany shutters, (£2 15s) while an embossed crest, in silver, would set you back an additional £4 and 4 shillings. The extras could easily add thirty pounds or more to the base price of a carriage.
Fashions in carriage design changed frequently, and this built in an obsolescence similar to today's mobile handsets. Those families who could afford to buy a new carriage regularly would do so to keep up with the latest trends, and be seen in the most fashionable new models. This also stimulated the market in second-hand carriages.
Carriage makers would happily take an old carriage in part-exchange, although it was unlikely they would give much for it. If it was in good condition they would refurbish it and sell it on, Some unscrupulous sellers had as many tricks up their sleeve as a modern day used car salesman:
"Let no person venture to purchase without the advice of a Coachmaker. It is easy enough to make an old, worn-out carriage appear fresh and fair by the help of paint and putty, while at the same time, it may be more fit to be broken up than to be made use of."
[The Horse and Carriage Keeper's Oracle, by John Jarvis, 1828.]
The newspaper adverts offering second hand carriages for sale also have certain similarities to modern adverts. One example is this advertisement from the Morning Chronicle, of the 1st January 1810:
"LIGHT CHARIOT, barouche attached to the body, built for a pair of light blonde horses, painted yellow and black, elegant Morocco lining, nearly equal to new, price 130 guineas. A capital one horse chaise, whole panelled, very easy, hung on curricle springs, and long braces, with head &c., nearly good as new, and painted in yellow and black. At Turner's coach-maker, opposite Shoreditch Church."
And there was also a lively trade in second-hand coaches outside London, as shown in this advert from the Hampshire Chronicle, from 22nd March 1819:
"Chariot, Phaeton, &c. TO BE SOLD. — a handsome, light, second-hand chariot, with a coachman's seat attached to the front of the body, nearly as good as new.
Also, a handsome, light new PHAETON, with shafts or pole, for one or two horses, with a shifting head, and hind seat for a servant, if required.
Also, several good second-hand GIGS, newly painted and lined, and in every respect in complete repair. Inquire at Wm. King's Coach Manufactory, near the Red Lion Inn, Fareham, Herts."
As well as the coach makers, selling off older carriages taken in part-exchange, there were also Carriage Marts trading in second-hand carriages. One was the Grand Carriage Mart, located on the Barbican, in London's commercial area. Another carriage mart was operated by Messrs Randall and Sons, Pancras Street, off Tottenham Court Road.
A wealthy gentleman who had decided to marry would often buy a new coach for his bride, on the assumption that he would soon need a larger vehicle to carry a growing family.
Taxes
Carriage ownership generated income for the government. For each carriage owned there was an annual charge to pay:
"For every coach, berlin, landau, chariot, calash, with four wheels, chaise with four wheels, and caravan, or by whatever name such carriages may be called, kept by any person for his own use, or to be let out to hire, (except hackney coaches) shall be paid the yearly sum of £7. And for every calash, chaise, chair, gig or whiskey, or by whatever name they are known or called, having two or three wheels, to be drawn by one or more horses, that shall be kept by any person for their own use, or to be let out to hire, the yearly sum of £3 10s."
[Encyclopaedia Britannica: Or a Dictionary of Arts, Sciences and Miscellaneous Literature 1810]
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Reading the Regency
Non-FictionA guide to Regency England for readers of classic literature or historical fiction set in the early 19th century. England, as it was in the early 1800's, can sometimes be as confusing to a modern reader as travelling to a foreign country. Their clot...
Transport - Coaches and Curricles
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